Berth construction



ct. 17, 1950 s, A, KELLY, JR, ErAL 2,526,562

BERTH CONSTRUCTION Oct. 17, 1950 s. A. KELLY, JR., ETL

BERTI-I CONSTRUCTION She-ets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 13, 1945 ATTORNEY.

Oct. 17, 1950 s. A. KELLY, JR., ETAL 2,526,562

BERTH CONSTRUCTION ATTORNEY.

0ct. 17, 1950 s. A. KELLY, JR.. ETAL BERTH coNs'rRUcTloN 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Sept 15, 1945 ,ILL llll lllll 1 rlllllllllll. m

ATTORNEY.

5 sheets-sheet 5 BERTI-I CONSTRUCTION s. A. KELLY, JR., ETAL 1N V EN TORS r9 Mds@ ATTORNEY.

Oct. 17, 195o Filed Sept. 13, 1945 Patented Oct. 17, 1950 Baarn CONSTRUCTION Stephen A. Kelly, Jr., Manhasset, and William R. Lindsay, Floral Park, N. Y., assignors to Kelcon- Corporation, Flushing, N. Y., a. corporation of New York Application September 13, 1945, Serial No. 616,068

3 Claims.

ThisY invention relates to improvements in berth constructions.

One of the objects of this invention is to produce a. berth construction in which a mattress-supporting partor bodyv structure, preferably of rectangular conformation, will be so supported on foldable suspension members comp-rising'rgid sections arranged to be readily, quickly, easily and safely'movable by oneV man from an inoperative, horizontal, elevated, out-of-the-way stowed position in the upper region of a room to a horizontal, made-up or sleeping position', thusv maintaining the berth in horizontalposition at all times and avoiding any tilting of the' mattress-supporting part during a stowing movement.

Another object of our invention is to provide suspensionmembers comprising a plurality of rectangular,y foldable skeleton frame sections of strong and rigid character by which a mattresssupporting structure may, in effect, be slung, and to provide means whereby. said skeleton frame' members maybe connected with the head and the foot cf the mattress-supporting structure andl with a suitable stationary or iixed support in the upper or ceiling region of a room.

Another object of our invention is to provide a foldable berth construction of the type speciedy in which suspension members of the type specified will include a side member for steadying any swinging movement of the slung mattress-supporting structure, said side member being similarly-foldable and composed of rigid frame sections hingedly movable conjointly with the foldable end-frames to enable raising or elevation and lowering of the mattress-supporting member evenly in a true vertical path and without any` appreciable. swinging or vibration, whereby a berth construction of the type speciiedmay be utilized on shipboard or under other conditions in which a construction slung from opposite ends only would be caused to vibrate and swing during the rolling or tossing of a ship or the like so as to make impractical use of amattress-supporting structure that is slung from. end framesonly.

Another object of our invention is to provide, in a berth construction having a mattress-supporting structure supported and elevatable and lowerable by foldable suspension members composed of rigid, skeleton frames as hereinabove described,

a foldable, hinged bed-rail or pair of bed-rails pof vention comprises the combination of members and arrangement of parts so combined as to col actv and cooperate with each other in the performsitioned to move into the corner or corners between the suspensionmembers and the mattresssupporting structure in the extended position of the berth, thus causing a blocking and locking of the folding movement of said suspensionmembers so as to prevent folding movement thereof. until the bed-rail is rst moved to its folded position. and also bracing and reinforcing the berthV construction in extended position.

With these and other objects in view, the inance of the functions and the accomplishment of the results hereinv contemplated, and comprises in oneof its adaptations the species or preferred form illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a View in front elevation of our berth construction in its extended or lowered position;

Fig. 2 is a similar View of our berth construction in folded or stowed position, part of the stowing compartment being broken away;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Figs 1 and 2 showing our berth construction partially folded, part of one-corner being broken. away;

Fig. 4 is a view in bottom plan of our berth in stowed position and part of the adjacent ceil- Fig. 5 is a view in end elevation showing our berth in extended position;

Fig. 6 is a view, partly in bottom plan and :partly broken away horizontal sections on the line 6 6 of Fig. 5 looking in the direction Aof the arrow;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary view in vertical elevation of the corner of oneend of our berth;

Fig. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary view in section on the line 8--8 of Fig. 7 looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 9 is a detail section of the automaticallyengageable latching mechanism in the wall and the manual releasable means on the berth for releasably retaining our berth construction in stowed position;

Fig. 10 is a detail view showing the bolting mechanism for fastening our berth in extended position to a wall or bulkhead; and

Figs. 11 and l2 are detail views of the keyactuating means for releasing the latching mechanism shown in Figs. E to 9.

Referring now to these drawings which illustrate a preferred embodiment of our invention, i indicates a mattress-supporting structure or berth body which, in the construction illustrated, comprises a rectangular box-like frame or pan open at its upper end. The said structure I is, as more particularly shown in Fig. 8, composed of upper and lower horizontally-disposed rectangular frames 2 and 3 lsuitably connected toeether by upright members 4 to form theY said box-like mattress-supporting structure. A spring 5 is connected to end bars 3a of the lower frame 3 and a mattress 6- (see Figs. 6 and 8) is mounted on said spring within said box-like frame structure I.

The mattress-supporting box-like structure l is suspended or slung in horizontal making-up position fromA a horizontal elevated support in a stowing space or compartment provided in the region of the` upper part or ceiling of the room within which our berth construction is mounted. As illustrated, a suitable chamber or compartment is .provided above the ceiling and is lined by a metallic box-like member 'I suitably supported in ceiling beams 8 and preferably arranged between ceiling strips 8', 8 (see Fig. 5).

The said mattress-supporting structure is so suspended and rmly supported by suspension members composed of foldable sectional end members 9 and iE and preferably including a sectional side member II. These foldable scctional suspension members have at their lower ends hinged connections at I2, I3 and I4 to the said mattress-supporting structure I and at their upper ends have hinged connections I5, I and Il with the edge `portions of the upper or top portion 'Ia of said box-like member l. An elevated support and stowing casing is provided when it is desired to Stow our mattress-support and suspending structure in an out-of-the-way place above the ceiling, though it will be obvious the the elevated support may comprise any suitV able means on or in the ceiling of the room in which the berth construction is mounted.

Each of the three foldable sectional suspension members 3, I@ and II is comprised of rigid, rectangular frame sections 2l-22, 23-24, and 25-25 respectively hinged together intermediate their ends at hinged joints I8, Ill and 2G and movable inwardly and across the mattress-supporting structure I, as more particularly illustrated in Fig. 3.

Said mattress-supporting structure, in making-up position, is thus suspended or slung from said foldable sectional suspension-members 3, IG and II when in extended position, and these suspension members 9, IE and II are movable pivotally in an inward and upward direction about the upper hinge connections l5, li and II and are simultaneously foldable intermediate the ends thereof about the hinges I8, I9 and to enable an upward folding movement of the sections of said members into substantial abutment with each other in a horizontal position in the upper region of the room, and said suspension members being hinged at their lower ends to said mattress-supporting structure I carry said structure I therewith into substantial contact and parallelism with said foldable suspension members 9, Ell and Il and said box-like mattress-supporting structure will be retained in horizontal position while being elevated into stowed condition in small space and said suspension members will fold into horizontal parallelism across and in contact with said mattress-supporting structure.

The inclusion in our berth construction of the end foldable members provides a firm suspension support for opposite ends of the mattress-supporting structure to hold the same in horizontal position at all times while the use of the side foldable member or frames steadies the raising and lowering operations of the berth construction caused by the :folding and extension of the end members, and also prevents any swinging or vibrating movement that would occur in the event that such berth construction were utilized in the equipment of a ship where a rolling motion is encountered.

This side frame member il is of a width relatively to the end frame members and to the box-like mattress-supporting structure that it will, in folded condition, fit in between the folded end frames, and we have found that we are enabled-to utilize a relatively wide side frame in order to produce a greater steadying movement than would be obtained, for example, by a single side bar, it being understood that a wide frame with a plurality of vertical members suitably spaced apart and connected in such suitably spaced relationship to the mattresssupporting structure will enable a rm and secure holding of the mattress-supporting structure in horizontal position, as well as a firm and secure retention of the parts in proper relationship during the operations of raising and lowering the same.

The frames of the foldable suspension members 9, IU and II are .composed of relatively thick bars so as to provide relatively Wide and flat abutting surfaces at each of the hinged joints. These wide abutting surfaces reinforce and stiffen the foldable suspension members. It is desirable that the said members Q, I0 and II fold in an inward direction only and that they be prevented from folding in any other direction. This result is obtained by positioning the top and bottom hinges on the inner side edges of these abutting surfaces of foldable members and positioning the middle hinges on the outer edges of such abutting surfaces so that the abutting surfaces will allow hinging movement only in an inward direction across the mattresssupporting structure I.

It is desirable to provide means for balancing the weight of the mattress-supporting structure and suspension members and, for this purpose, We provide at each end of the berth a spring balancing unit 3 of conventional type. As shown, this balancing unit is supported in the housing in elevated position and has a metallic spring-retractable tape 3| suitably mounted therein. The end Sie (see Fig. 8) of said tape is connected to a stud 32 on the mattress-supporting structure I and, in the extended position of the suspension members, extends downwardly along the frames.

Suitable latching means is provided for retaining the berth construction in stowed position, and, as illustrated, we provide a series of four latch housings 33 in proper elevated position lat each end of the casing l. These housings have latch members 34 urged into latching .position by springs 35 adapted to extend automatically into engagement with apertures 36 in the mattress-supporting structure when the same is moved into stowed or elevated position.

It is desirable to provide means on the berth for manually releasing the latch members 34 to permit a lowering of the berth, and, for this purpose, we mount within the lower portion of the mattress-supporting structure a key-actuated latch-releasing mechanism adapted, upon actuation, to engage the pawl-like latching members 34 and to move them out of engagement with the apertures 36 to release the berth for a lowering operation. As illustrated, this release of. ur preferred means for oscillating these rods to unlatch the berth comprises the provision in the lower portion of the mattress-supporting structure of a pair of slide-rods 40 and 4l suitab-ly mounted adjacent to the front edge of said structure in bearing plates 42-43. The ends of the rods 40-41 extend through the bearing plates 42 and 43 and are urged by springs 44 and 45 into the released position shown in Fig. 6 adjacent to a key 46 having wings 41-48 adapted, upon rotary movement in the direction of the arrows, to engage the ends of the slidable rods 40 and 4| and to slide the same against the action of the springs 44 and 45 to cause the opposite ends of the rods 40 and 4I to engage the crank ends 49 and 50 of the said oscillating rods 5| and 52 to oscillate the same for the purpose specied.

The key 46, shown in Figs. 11 and 12, is entirely separate Iirom the mattress-supporting structure and is insertable through a key hole 58 in the bottom .plate 58 of the mattress-supporting structure l (see Fig. 4). The contour of the key is shown in Fig. 12. It is inserted through the key-hole 58 and the end of its shank passes into an aperture 46a in a keyguiding back-plate 46 disposed within the said bottom portion of the mattress-supporting structure.

In certain constructions, and especially in constructions adapted to be used on ship-board, it is desirable to anchor a berth to a bulkhead and, for this purpose, we preferably provide at each end of the mattress-supporting structure slidable bolt members 59 mounted in bearings 69 and having at their outer ends an abutment head 59 adapted to 'abut against a fixed metal plate 6I on the side of the bulkhead 62. Said abutment head has projecting therefrom a slotted tongue 63 which is extensible thro-ugh an aperture 6I in the plate 6I and is adapted upon turning to be locked in any conventional way through the wings or tongues 63 to the bulkhead 62 and plate 6l. An operating handle 64 is provided for sliding and turning the bolt members 59 into engaging and releasing positions.

In the preferred embodiment illustrated, we provide a pair of bed-rails 65-65' which in opierative position function as bed-rails and also as blocking elements to prevent a folding movement of the suspension members. As illustrated, the bed-rails 65-65' are rectangular frames hinged at one edge by hinges 66-66 to the end suspension members 22 and 24 respectively, and in the lowered position of the berth and the extended position of the suspension members are movable on their hinges to extend into the corners formed between the suspension members and the mattress-supporting structure. Obviously, when thus positioned, these bed-rails block the folding movement of said suspension members until they are turned inwardly about the vertical axes of the hinges 66, 66 and thus moved into folded position in parallelism with the suspension members, whereupon the said suspension members may be folded in relation to the mattress-supporting structure and the mattress structure may be raised into stowed position. These bed-rail members thus form a safety device to prevent unintended movement of the berth and also serve to steady and prevent vibration of the parts of the device in use,

Having described our invention, we claim:

1. A berth construction comprising a mattresssupporting structure movable from a lower horizontally made-up position to an elevated stowed horizontal position in the upper region of a room, said mattress-supporting structure being suspensively supported by suspension members comprising upper and lower sections, each suspension member being hinged intermediate its ends and foldable to extend inwardly over the mattresssupporting structure, said suspension member also having at its upper end a hinged connection with an elevated stationary support and at its lower end being provided with a hinged connection with said mattress-supporting structure and Iorming corners oi rectangular conformation, and rectangular bed rail members fitted into said rectangular corners and having a hinged connection with one of said corner-forming members, said rectangular bed rail 4members being adapted in operative position to block a folding movement of said suspension member and in inoperative position being adapted to lie flatly against one of said two members to permit a folding movement of said suspension members.

2. A berth construction as claimed in claim 1 in whch the bed rail members are hinged to the lower sections of the suspension members and are turnable inwardly about the axis of the 30 hinged connection to lie in folded position against said suspension members.

3. A berth construction comprising a mattresssupporting structure movable from a lower horizontally made-up position to an elevated stowed horizontal position in the upper region of a room,

said mattress-supporting structure being suspensively supported by suspension members comprising upper and lower sections, each composed of a rectangular frame disposed at opposite ends of .10 said mattress-supporting structure, each suspension member being hinged intermediate its ends and foldable to extend inwardly over the mattress-supporting structure, said suspension member also having at its upper end a hinged connec- -15 tion with an elevated stationary support and at its lower end being provided with a hinged connection with said mattress-supporting structure and forming corners of rectangular conformation, rectangular bed rail members fitted into said rectangular corners and having a hinged connection with one of said corner-forming members. and a third suspension member similar to the said end suspension members and connected with one side edge of said mattress-supporting structure.

STEPHEN AfKELLY, JR. WILLIAM R. LINDSAY.

` REFERENCES CITED The 'following references are of record in the le of this patent:y

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date f 21,600 Creighton Sept. 28, 1858 242,801 Starr June 14, 1881 384,162 Hobbie June 5, 1888 928,726 Witthaus July 20, 1909 947,730 Carlton Jan. 25, 1910 70 1,674,215 Montgomery June 19, 1928 1,714,613 Montgomery May 28, 1929 1,720,116 Broome et al July 9, 1929 1,819,516 Kelly Aug. 18, 1931 

